Battlefield 4 Field Upgrades Guide – How To Unlock

Field Upgrades are a new addition in Battlefield 4, and replace Specializations from the previous entry.

The purpose of these is to encourage team-play in a squad. People who like to play on their own may still benefit from Field Upgrades, as the first bonus is available to them even when playing as a one-man-gang.

Battlefield 4 Field Upgrades

The Field Upgrade Progress Bar indicates which level you’re currently at, and how much more you need to progress in order to benefit from the next Field Upgrade bonus.

You move further along the Progress Bar as you perform actions such as resupplying and healing team-mates and repairing allied vehicles. Other conditional squad actions such as ‘Savior’ and ‘Suppression Assists’ also help you progress through Field Upgrades.

Dying sets you back a bit on the Progress Bar, and decimation of your squad has a similar effect.

Every kit in Battlefield 4 has five Field Upgrade Paths. Three of these are generic and available to every kit, while there are two paths that are exclusive to each kit.

Unlocking new paths require you to reach a certain score for the kit you’re using. Each Field Upgrade Path has four upgrades to unlock during the course of a match. We’ll start with the three paths available to all kits first.

All Kits

DefensiveThe Defensive path is suited for heavy gunners and other frontline soldiers that have low mobility. The damage reduction to shots to the chest is available right from the start, and gives you a slight advantage during one-to-one encounters.

If you’re able to progress further, the latter upgrades provide a lot more survivability, allowing you to stay alive longer.

Unlock Requirement: None

Upgrades

Armor – Reduces incoming Damage to the Chest by 10%

Cover – Decreases amount of Incoming Suppression by 50%

Flak – Decreases damage from explosions by 15%

Quick Regen – Decreases time before Out of Combat Heal by 20%

ShadowThe only other path apart from Defensive available to all kits right from the start, the Shadow is a good choice for players that prefer to sneak around and kill targets without compromising their position.

The first ability makes it tough for enemies to catch you unaware as your location is only very briefly given away when you fire your weapon. This makes the last position they’ve heard or seen inaccurate and gives you a chance to surprise them instead when they come looking for you.

This path is more appropriate for quick-moving soldiers that prefer to constantly keep moving around the battlefield without alerting their foes. It’s also a good choice for snipers early on, as it takes quite a lot of Recon Kit score to unlock other Field Upgrade Paths suitable for them.

Unlock Requirement: None

Upgrades

Quick Unspot: Reduces time you are Spotted by 2 seconds

Sprint: Increases maximum Sprint Speed by 10%

Reduced Fall: Increases height you can Fall without Damage

Stealth: Undetected by Motion Sensors except when Sprinting

OffensiveAlthough available to all kits, the Offensive path isn’t available from the get-go. Every kit has its own score requirement to unlock the Offensive path.

In terms of upgrades, it’s similar to the Shadow path since two of the bonuses are the same.

They do have a different order however, and the other two upgrades give you an advantage in direct conflict as opposed to Shadow’s stealth oriented upgrades.

The Offensive path is much more focused on quick movement and breaching enemy defense lines. The increased sprint speed that’s available right from the start allows you to evade enemy fire as you run from cover-to-cover.

The upgrades that follow give you more ammo and increase your grenade capacity, making it particularly suitable for assault units and other soldier types specializing in infiltration, albeit of a different kind.

Unlock Requirement

Assault – 28,000 Assault Kit score

Engineer – 33,000 Engineer Kit score

Support – 27,000 Support Kit score

Recon – 22,000 Recon Kit score

Upgrades

Sprint: Increases maximum Sprint Speed by 10%

Ammo: Increases maximum inventory of Bullets by 50%

Grenades: Increases maximum inventory of Hand Grenades by 1

Reduced Fall: Increases height you can Fall without Damage

Exclusive Field Upgrade Paths

Now we’ll go over the exclusive Field Upgrade Paths available to the four kits in Battlefield 4. Each kit has two unique paths that must first be unlocked.

Most of them provide upgrades to weapons, gadgets and other pieces of equipment that can be used only by that particular kit.

Assault Kit

Combat MedicThe Combat Medic path is all about improving your Assault Kit’s medic capabilities. The basic upgrade lets you deploy an additional Medic Bag or Pack, providing you and squad-mates much needed health regeneration in key points on the map.

Since the focus is on supporting your squad, this path progresses through the upgrades rather quickly. Combat Medic is best suited for players who act as the medic for a team’s vanguard.

Unlock Requirement: 63,000 Assault Kit score

Upgrades

Medkit Upgrade: Increases maximum deployed Medic Bags and Packs by 1

Sprint: Increases maximum Sprint Speed by 10%

Defib Upgrade: Increases charge up speed of the Defibrillators by 100%

Medical Unit: Occupied vehicles will slowly Heal nearby Soldiers

GrenadierThe final path you can unlock in the Assault Kit is rather explosive in nature.

You’ll always spawn with a grenade capacity of two instead of the default one when using this Field Upgrade Path.

The latter upgrades give you more capacity for 40mm grenades, making this a great choice for players who use the grenade launcher often, be it as an attachment or a stand-alone weapon.

If bringing down buildings, destroying enemy cover and reshaping the battlefield is your thing then the Grenadier path is for you.

Unlock Requirement: 141,000 Assault Kit score

Upgrades

Grenades: Increases maximum inventory of Hand Grenades by 1

Sprint: Increases maximum Sprint Speed by 10%

40mm Grenades: Increases maximum inventory of 40mm Grenades by 3

Flak: Decreases damage from explosions by 15%

Engineer Kit

MechanicThe Mechanic path is all about repairing allied vehicles. It is pretty much like the Defensive path, just without the quickened health regeneration and the chest armor.

Flak and Cover make it a viable path for infantry combat against other players, although you won’t benefit much from it against enemy vehicles.

Your Repair Tool repairs and damages vehicles faster than normal in the Mechanic Field Upgrade path, and since this is the first upgrade, it’ll be available to you at all times.

You’ll reach the different upgrade tiers rather quickly if you stick to repairing vehicles and supporting your squad when using the Mechanic. Reaching the final bonus will help allied vehicles a lot, as you’ll be repairing all nearby vehicles when inside one of them.

Unlock Requirement: 64,000 Engineer Kit score

Upgrades

Fast Repair: Increases speed and sabotage of Repairs by 35%

Flak: Decreases damage from explosions by 15%

Cover: Decreases amount of Incoming Suppression by 50%

Repair Unit: Occupied vehicles will slowly Repair nearby Vehicles

Anti-TankAlthough the name might imply otherwise, the Anti-Tank path is great for combating every vehicle type and not just tanks. The increased inventory for mines makes it the perfect choice for a soldier type focused on taking out all kinds of enemy land vehicles.

The second upgrade increases rocket capacity, giving you much needed ammunition for taking out the enemy team’s aircrafts and tanks, and also for reshaping the map to your advantage. It also provides you with defensive bonuses against explosives and lets you deploy more explosives at later Field Upgrade levels.

Anti-Tank is best suited for a team’s demolitionist.

Unlock Requirement: 108,000 Engineer Kit score

Upgrades

Mines: Increases maximum inventory of AT Mines or M2 SLAM to 6

Rockets: Increases maximum inventory of AT and AA ammo to 7

More Deployed Explosives: Increases maximum deployed Explosives to 6

Flak: Decreases damage from explosions by 15%

Support Kit

Indirect FireThe Indirect Fire Field Upgrade Path primarily enhances a Support Kit’s ability to resupply other soldiers in your team.

The increased number of deployable Ammo Boxes and Packs lets you resupply team-mates at multiple different points simultaneously. This gives your team an edge in sustained skirmishes, as your team won’t run out of ammunition during prolonged firefights, allowing them to defend a point or siege one fortified by the enemy.

You’ll also be able to resupply nearby soldiers while on the move in vehicle at the final upgrade tier, letting you and your squad-mates replenish much needed ammunition while on the move.

As the focus is on helping out and resupplying your team, reaching the final upgrade is relatively easy as you’ll find yourself progressing through the Field Upgrade Progress Bar if you play that way.

Perimeter DefensePerimeter Defense is all about improving a soldier’s cover and suppression fire capabilities. Giving you additional inventory for bullets as the default upgrade, it helps a lot when playing as a long-range heavy gunner.

The latter upgrades give you increased suppression, making it much more difficult for your foes to retaliate to your fire or to attack your frontline squad-mates.

A Support type soldier with Perimeter Defense, wielding a LMG, is a great choice for a team’s point guard and can provide cover fire for a good few minutes before running out of ammo.

Unlock Requirement: 104,000 Support Kit score

Upgrades

Ammo: Increases maximum inventory of Bullets by 50%

Suppression: Increases amount of Outgoing Suppression by 50%

Claymores: Increases the maximum inventory of Claymores to 3

MP-APS Upgrade: Increases time MP-APS can deflect incoming explosives

Recon Kit

Spec OpsSimilar to Shadow, the Spec Ops path puts emphasis on moving about the warzone unnoticed. The default upgrade makes you undetectable by Motion Sensors as long as you don’t sprint when near one.

The same upgrade is available to the Shadow path after the Progress Bar is maxed out. In conjunction with the armament available to Recon Kits, the Spec Ops path makes for a great infiltration unit with improved scouting capabilities.

Quick Unspot is also available as the final upgrade, making Spec Ops a great choice for those who prefer to stealthily infiltrate enemy territory and catch their foes unaware.

SniperAs the name suggests, the Sniper path amplifies a Recon unit’s sniping skills. The first upgrade lets you hold your breath for a longer duration when viewing through a scope, giving you ample time to line up your shot.

The bonuses unlocked by making your way further in the Progress Bar decrease the suppression from enemy fire, make you noticeable very briefly after firing and force your targets to remain ‘Spotted’ for a longer duration.

Bottom-line, you really should use the Sniper Field Upgrade Path when playing with a bolt-action rifle. The downside is that it’s the last path you’ll unlock when using the Recon Kit, so until it becomes available, stick to Shadow. Quick Unspot helps a lot!

Unlock Requirement: 78,000 Recon Kit score

Upgrades

Hold Breath: Increases time you can Steady your scope by 100%

Cover: Decreases amount of Incoming Suppression by 50%

Quick Unspot: Reduces time you are Spotted by 2 seconds

Advanced Spot: Increases time your targets are Spotted by 45%

Comment if there is anything confusing or if you want to add something to the guide!